'Don't interfere with our elections': Teresa Leger Fernández slams SAVE America Act

After the Senate voted 51-48 to begin debate on the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE America) Act on Tuesday, Representative Teresa Leger Fernández (D-NM) exemplified why Democrats have been voting against the bill and said it would lead to "voter suppression." In a video shared on X, she held her ID, saying that while she can board a flight using it, she cannot register to vote or vote under the provisions of the bill. "So when they say they just want an ID, it's not this. They're gonna make you get a passport, which costs money, or walk around with your birth certificate. Voting is not a privilege like taking a plane. Voting is our right. It's what we get to do 'cause we're Americans. Don't interfere with our elections, Republicans," she said.

The SAVE America Act, the second draft of a legislation that was passed in the House as the SAVE Act, has become a major point of political contention ahead of the midterm elections. While Democrats argue that the bill is designed to suppress American voices by creating additional voting hurdles for specific demographics, like low-income individuals and women who have changed their names, Republican Party members see it as a necessary step to stop voter fraud.  

In a social media post on Tuesday, Democratic Senator Mark Kelly said that the bill would "disenfranchise many Americans" if it became law. "This bill requires everyone to re-register to vote in person, and your driver’s license, REAL ID, or military ID aren't even good enough. Imagine all of our seniors who don't have valid passports and haven't seen their birth certificates in decades? What about them? How hard will it be for them to register?" he had written. 

GOP legislators, meanwhile, have said that the voter registration process would not be difficult in practice as special accommodations have been made for those who do not have all the necessary documentation, including passports, driver's licenses, and birth certificates. "We've made special accommodation for those who don't have documentation, for those who can't find their birth certificate—maybe their house burned down, maybe their dog ate it, whatever it is," Senator Mike Lee had said. For such individuals, the GOP bill allows states to take sworn statements of citizenship to be verified later by local officials.

Ahead of the debate, Senate Majority Leader John Thune said that Republicans would use the Democrats' position on the SAVE America Act if they failed to get on board. “I think that's a fairly simple position and one Democrats ought to eventually get on board with. But if we don't … obviously, it's an issue we will be able to use, I think, in the fall elections," Thune told Fox News anchor Bret Baier, The Hill reported.